Old San Diego courthouse heads for dustbin

The expectation is that the new Superior Court building, constructed to replace three downtown court properties, will be modern and adaptable so that it can safely accommodate the 1.2 million people who will pass through its doors each year.

The expectation is that the new Superior Court building, constructed to replace three downtown court properties, will be modern and adaptable so that it can safely accommodate the 1.2 million people who will pass through its doors each year.

Prisoners are separated from the public by a yellow stripe on the corridors as they are escorted to trial by sheriff’s deputies.

The plumbing, air conditioning and escalators break down regularly. The wiring is so problematic that internet connections are spotty.

With the opening of the new $555.5 million San Diego Central Courthouse immediately west, a new “dream” courthouse is dawning. It will be dedicated Monday in an invitation-only event.

But whither the old courthouse?

The county, which turned over the property to the state and now is getting it back, plans to advertise the property to prospective developers, whittle down the list to finalists and ask them to respond to a formal request for proposals for review by the county Board of Supervisors on Sept. 26. The goal is to demolish the courthouse, build a tunnel between the Central Jail and the Central Courthouse, and redevelop the property commercially.

Supervisor Greg Cox said the Broadway and A Street blocks have the most commercial development potential.

But the middle block lies on top of an active earthquake fault and is designated as the site of City Square park in the downtown community plan with a possible underground parking garage.

“It’s all going to be dictated by the city of San Diego and Civic San Diego land-use issues,” Cox said, referring to the city’s agency that oversees downtown development.

CivicSD Vice President Brad Richter said robotic parking equipment could be used to maximize parking under the park at perhaps 100 or more spaces per level. The agency operates the downtown parking district and could finance the parking facility’s startup costs from parking meter revenue, said one of the district’s advisory board members, Gary Smith.

An old county jail with a capacity of 700 occupies part of the middle block. The GEO Group leases the jail from the state and U.S. Marshals Service has a contract to operate it as a detention facility. The lease, which generates nearly $3.6 million annually, expires on March 31, 2019. Cox said the lease could be extended and the revenues used to finance the tunnel, currently estimated at $25 million.

Besides the old courthouse, two other downtown court facilities are being closed — the Madge Bradley Courthouse at 1409 Fourth Ave., which handles small-claims cases, and the Family Law Courthouse at 1556 Sixth Ave.

April Heinze, who oversees the county’s real estate assets and other departments, said the Bradley building will be renovated for the sheriff’s court security bureau and the Sixth Avenue property will be leased or sold.

Michael Roddy, the Superior Court’s executive officer and jury commissioner, said the San Diego History Center is acquiring various records on cases and local county history before trashing what is no longer needed.

Criminal records will be stored at the new building, but over time the court will shift to digital records and the space will likely be used for staff and other court needs.

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San Diego has agreed to sell 16 lots in Nestor for $1 each, in the pursuit of affordable housing. The nonprofit San Diego Community Land Trust plans to build three and four-bedroom homes there for people with moderate incomes. That means a family of five with an income of up to $102,750.

San Diego has agreed to sell 16 lots in Nestor for $1 each, in the pursuit of affordable housing. The nonprofit San Diego Community Land Trust plans to build three and four-bedroom homes there for people with moderate incomes. That means a family of five with an income of up to $102,750.

CAPTION

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